Derrick Coleman

Derrick Coleman, the power forward for the Nets, is considered to be among the best - perhaps the best - at his position. A powerful rebounder and an inside and outside scoring threat, Coleman averaged 20.5 points, 13.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals last week as the New Jersey Nets posted a 2-1 record.''Our problem has been execution down the stretch. We're not hitting the big shots that we need to at the end.'' - Derrick Coleman.

Depending on your financial standing and number of write-offs, tax day could be the best or worst time of the year. In honor of April 15, IRS Tax Day, I think a repeat of Yahoo! Sports' top seven athletes with financial disaster is appropriate. I've added one new name for consideration, former No. 1 NBA draft pick Derrick Coleman . The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month that Derrick Coleman is almost $5 million in debt. For all the regular joe blows, just remember more is not always better.

Even though he has hinted that this will be his last season, Orlando Magic point guard Derek Harper played like he's not quite ready for it to end.Harper and guard Nick Anderson combined for 55 points as the Magic hung on for their playoff lives with a 113-92 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.The win, in front of a sellout crowd of 17,248 at Orlando Arena, snapped a three-game losing streak for the Magic (38-38), who trail the New Jersey Nets (39-36) by 11/2 games for the last of eight Eastern Conference playoff spots.

TODAY'S THE DAY Summer solstice! Yes, this is the first day of summer, so don't be surprised if it's a little hot outside. Oh, and this is the longest day of the year in terms of daylight, so play another nine. COME ON, ADMIT IT You've already started to miss hockey. THE WORLD IS ENDING The Jacksonville Jags have sold 54,000 season tickets and are starting a waiting list! JERRY LIKES Italy, Spain & Argentina. BIRTHDAYS Jean-Paul Sartre, 1905* Rick Sutcliffe, 1956 Derrick Coleman, 1967 Richard Jefferson, 1980 *Existentially dead.

There were many reasons why the New Jersey Nets went from the playoffs two seasons ago to pitiful last year. Take your pick:They got a new coach in Butch Beard when Chuck Daly bailed out. Or they had injuries that cost them both starting guards, their power forward and center during the season.But probably what made this team so bad is when the most fierce battle it fought all season was over whether to wear sports coats to games.A once-proud franchise that boasted Julius Erving during its days in the ABA is filled with moody stars and malcontents.

The waiting doesn't get any easier for Larry Krystkowiak. And neither does the problem it has caused.Krystkowiak, who was supposed to be the role-playing power forward the Magic lacked last season, has not played since Nov. 17, when he received a stress reaction to a bone in his right foot.His absence will be accentuated tonight when the Orlando Magic (13-10) play the New Jersey Nets (9-14). The Nets' most dangerous player is power forward Derrick Coleman, who appears headed for his first NBA All-Star Game.

The Orlando Magic, who braved a fierce storm en route to the Meadowlands Arena, seemed to have nothing left for the New Jersey Nets on Thursday night.The Magic's best moves may have taken place in the parking lot as they withstood powerful winds after stepping off the team bus. New Jersey won the game, 116-97, with forward Derrick Coleman racking up 34 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.One statistic showed how lackadaisically the Magic played. Orlando was outrebounded, 47-25, and it was the team's most lopsided loss of the season.

While the New Jersey Nets are waging a public battle to convince Derrick Coleman to sign a long-term contract extension, their fragile seven-man ownership board is struggling to determine what its own association with the National Basketball Association franchise will be.Several NBA sources have said the majority owners running the Nets have had recent discussions about selling the team to at least one group, the Maloof family of Albuquerque, N.M., which...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Derrick Coleman had 24 points and 11 rebounds as the Charlotte Hornets won their fourth straight game with a 110-96 victory over the Boston Celtics in front of a sparse crowd. Only about 2,000 fans were in the building because of a storm that dropped several inches of snow on the Charlotte area.

With the No. 4 pick I think the Magic should draft Felton Spencer of Louisville. If still available, Derrick Coleman would be satisfactory. No guards or small forwards: We have enough and good enough small players.Roy Raker Altamonte Springs

In pro sports, NBA Commissioner David Stern enjoys a reputation for being fast on his feet, savvy and street smart. Stern needed all of that skill and more as he moved quickly last weekend to address the public-relations damage caused by the melee last Friday night between players and fans at the Indiana Pacers-Detroit Pistons game in Auburn Hills, Mich. After more than a year of negative publicity surrounding the legal troubles of Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, Stern had hoped brighter days were ahead.

PHILADELPHIA -- They still have the worst record in the NBA, but the Orlando Magic are no longer the worst team in basketball. A ray of hope -- however dim -- finally has appeared. The Magic delivered another winner Friday night, 98-93 over the Philadelphia 76ers, doing many of the simple things they were incapable of doing just a few weeks ago. "Our 12 wins -- that's still a fact we can't escape right now,'' said Tracy McGrady. "But I don't think anyone in here believes we're that bad. You can feel some confidence beginning to grow -- at least for now.'' McGrady outplayed Philadelphia's Allen Iverson in the battle of the stars, but his supporting cast also outplayed its counterpart, allowing the Magic to lead the entire second half.

LAST SEASON: 48-34. 2nd in Atlantic Division COACH: Randy Ayers (0-0). If he can keep Allen Iverson focused -- and that's why he was hired -- then he will be a success. Ayers certainly will be familiar with Iverson and the Sixers. He served the past six years in Philadelphia as an assistant to Larry Brown. LOOKING FORWARD: Iverson will have to learn how to play with another scorer, but he needs one at this point of his career for the Sixers to be successful. The Sixers acquired Glenn Robinson in the off-season in a three-way trade that sent Keith Van Horn to the Knicks, giving them a guy who can score 20 points every night.

All-Star PG Jason Kidd might ask to be traded if the Nets are sold and moved out of New Jersey. "I didn't sign on here to go to Long Island," Kidd said Saturday. "I signed on here to win a championship. "With all the confusion, I could've easily gone to San Antonio if I wanted to move. If I felt like moving, I would've rather gone to San Antonio if that was the case." Kidd was addressing an article in ESPN The Magazine, which said he would ask for a trade if the NBA team left New Jersey.

T-shirts are flying off the racks at the University Bookstore, but it doesn't take an economics professor at Syracuse University to figure out the laws of supply and demand are fragile in the case of the school's unbeaten basketball team. First came, ``16-0, Here We Go!'' Then, ``18-0, Best Start in the History of Syracuse Basketball.'' If the fourth-ranked Orangemen can keep the nation's only perfect Division I record intact by winning tonight at Providence and Monday against Seton Hall, those rather industrious vendors will have to come up with another slogan (and more shirts)